Special: 21st Army Group to the South

The Battle of the Bulge (16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945) was a major German offensive taking place in the Belgian mountain region of Ardennes. During this battle, the American troops ended up split into two groups, one out of reach of the commander. That’s why the British 21st Army group ended up leading the American forces.

To commemorate this move, we have in-game bonuses on some of the tanks which served during this confrontation as well as something for tank crews of all nations.

From the Saturday, December 15th at 06:30 CET (05:30 GMT) to the Tuesday, December 18th at 06:00 CET (05:00 GMT)you can benefit of the following bonuses in game:

Do you want your crew members to learn new qualifications or skills? Whether spending credits or gold, it will cost half the normal price!

Remember that the Special will only last until Tuesday morning. Don’t miss the occasion to train your crew members and win more credits!

In December 1944, the Ardennes sector was only held by six American divisions, and was considered to be a “quiet zone” where no fighting was really expected. The Germans decided to take advantage of the Allies’ complacency and planned an attack. Hitler’s aims were to split the British and American Allied line in half and then encircle and destroy four Allied armies, forcing the Western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty in the Axis Powers' favour. The German troops began to put this plan into action whilst spreading confusion by using German infiltrators wearing American uniforms to cut telephone wires.

When the Germans attacked during the Battle of the Bulge, Eisenhower’s First Army found itself on the north side of the salient formed by the mountains, and thus isolated from the 12th Army Group, its commanding authority. On the 20th December, Eisenhower decided to give command of the isolated American troops to the 21st Army Group, commanded by Field Marshal Montgomery. The 21st Army Group was a military group formed by the Britain (2nd British Army) and Canadian (1st Canadian Army) troops. As a result, the 21st Army, reinforced by the 9th and the 1st US Armies were able to move in and weaken the German positions.

On the 3rd January 1945 the Allies went on to the offensive, and on the 16th, units of the US 1st and 3rd Armies had joined together at Houffalize, closing the last German escape route from the forward end of the salient. At the end of January, the German troops had retreated all the way back to their starting point. It was a victory for the Allies, but both sides counted huge losses.

To show that by joining forces we can do amazing things, remember this historical event and show us how you can work together on the battlefields!